As the state budget nears final language and votes, New York City Public Advocate Jumaane D. Williams issued the following statement about the housing provisions in the reported deal, criticizing the weakened tenant protections and enhanced giveaways to landlords and developers.
"The details that have been publicly reported about the housing deal are concerning, and appear to show it is not the grand bargain or triumph that the governor is trying to present. It is not what tenants have spent years struggling for and suffering without. It isn’t Good Cause, or even ‘Just Okay’ Cause, it’s ‘Just ‘Cause I want to say I did something on housing.’
"Carving out massive exemptions and requiring municipalities to “opt-in” to receive the protections – maybe the governor just doesn’t want them in Buffalo – will leave tenants across the state with no protections at all. This is policy paid for by the real estate industry and promoted by allies like the governor. I appreciate the ongoing fight by tenants, legislators, and the leaders of each chamber to get the deal we deserve, and urge them to keep going. If the goal of the policy was to stop tenants and advocates from fighting for true housing justice, it has already failed – we will continue to push for better bills up to and after the budget vote until all New Yorkers are able to find and stay in their homes."
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